Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), one of the world’s leading research universities, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 1865 the school was opened in Boston by geologist William Barton Rogers, who became its first president.

Originally devoted to industrial science, MIT has developed into five schools offering undergraduate as well as graduate work. The school of science offers programs in biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and earth, atmospheric and planetary sciences. The school of engineering offers programs in all fields of engineering, as well as aeronautics and astronautics. The school of architecture offers programs in architecture, media arts and sciences, and urban studies and planning. The Alfred P. Sloan School of Management has programs in management science linking fundamental disciplines with quantitative studies. The school of humanities and social science offers programs in economics, the humanities, linguistics, philosophy, political science, and science, technology, and society. MIT and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution offer joint graduate programs in oceanography and ocean engineering.

Throughout its history MIT has held a worldwide reputation for teaching and research. It was among the first schools to use the laboratory method of instruction, develop the modern profession of chemical engineering, and offer courses in aeronautical and electrical engineering and applied physics. Today its special facilities include five high-energy accelerators, a nuclear reactor, and more than 70 interdisciplinary programs and laboratories, including the Center for Cancer Research; the Laboratory for Computer Science; the Center for International Studies; the Media Laboratory; the Research Laboratory of Electronics; the Center for Cognitive Science; and the International Financial Services Research Center. MIT Press has an active publishing program and is noted for its books on linguistic theory, architecture and urban studies, and the sciences.